Associations of serious physical injuries with posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms: a cross-sectional survey am
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ESEARCH ARTICLE
Open Access
Associations of serious physical injuries with posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms: a cross‑sectional survey among university students in 26 countries Supa Pengpid1,2 and Karl Peltzer3*
Abstract Background: Evidence of the relationship between serious physical injury and poor mental health among university students from low- and middle-income countries is limited. The aim of the study is to assess the association between serious physical injury and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive symptoms in university students from low- and middle-income countries. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, 18,382 university students from 26 countries responded to a short screening scale for DSM-IV PTSD, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale as well as questions on injury and sociodemographics. Results: The overall prevalence of past 12-month serious physical injury was 24.7%. In adjusted logistic regression analysis, compared to having no past 12-month serious physical injury, having a past 12-month serious injury was associated with 1.35 (95% CI 1.18, 1.56) times higher odds for PTSD symptoms and 1.49 (95% CI 1.32, 1.67) times higher odds for depressive symptoms in university students. Conclusion: Compared to students who had not sustained a serious physical injury in the past 12 months, students with an injury had significantly higher PTSD and depressive symptoms. Mental health support of students who sustained physical injuries may prevent PTSD and depressive symptoms. Keywords: Injuries, Stress disorders, Depressive symptoms, Students, Americas, Africa, Asia Background Injury, depression and anxiety disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are one of the main causes of disability worldwide, in particular in low- and middle-income countries [1, 2]. University students may be particularly vulnerable to injury, PTSD, and depressive symptoms. For example, in a study among university
*Correspondence: [email protected] 3 Department of Psychology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
students in 26 countries the prevalence of past 12-month injury was 25.2% [3]. In a review of 37 studies among university students in 20 countries, the overall prevalence of depressive symptoms was 24.4% [4], and in a study among university students from 22 countries, the prevalence of PTSD symptoms was 20.9% [5]. However, there seems to be a lack of research among university students, in particular in low- and middleincome countries, on the association between injury, PTSD and depression symptoms. In systematic reviews based on clinical studies, physical injury was associated with PTSD, anxiety and depression [6, 7]. In an adult
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